The present invention relates to ground supported portable sports field goal structures and mechanisms for securing such structures to the ground surface.
The sport of soccer is played on a 120 yard field between opposing goals on either end. Each consists of a frame and a net. The frame is rectangular in shape and is customarily constructed of heavy wooden beams or steel pipe permanently embedded in the ground. The net is attached to the sides, top and back of the frame.
The permanency of the standard soccer goal and net limits its use to only those fields where such frames can be mounted. Movable goals of rigid, bulky girth are also available but are heavy and difficult to transport to various playing fields. Additionally, they are not readily disassembled or folded.
Other outdoor games also involve the use of a goal or net structure situated at opposite ends of a playing field. Availability and practicality of portable goals for such sports has also been a problem.
Part of the difficulty with portable net structures, especially in portable soccer nets, is the failure of the net frame assembly to provide adequate means for attachment to the ground surface that will facilitate removal, folding and storage. Many structures rest directly on the ground surface without being anchored by spikes or guying mechanisms. Others are secured but with heavy ground sleeves that are very difficult to remove from the playing field when the goal is to be folded and stored.
An example of a portable soccer goal is found in the "Brine" catalog of Aug. 17, 1978. Brine discloses, under item 9, page 13, a portable soccer goal having "ground sleeves" for securing the goal "end frames" into position. It is not disclosed, but assumed, that the "ground sleeves" are to be driven by a heavy hammer or sledge into the ground, with open upwardly facing ends for slidably receiving the bottom ends of the goal end frame structures. The net is draped over the assembled frame members and is attached by "ground anchors" to the ground surface. Such "ground anchors" typically resemble tent stakes, being driven into the ground and having hooked upper ends for attachment to the net structure.
It is understood that such "ground sleeves" are often left in place permanently once positioned, due in part to the difficulty in pulling them back up. The "portable" goal then becomes the remainder of the tubular frame and net. Another difficulty experienced with "ground sleeves" is that they must be driven to a precise depth in order to locate the net top at regulation height above the ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,127,171 to Pennell discloses a portable soccer goal in which a net is stretched across a frame made up of two collapsible triangular end members and an interconnecting overhead cross bar. It appears that the net is secured to the frame in a relatively conventional manner, by tying the ends of the net webbing to the cross bar, then draping the opposed net ends over the end frames. The triangular end members include horizontal base sections that rest against the ground surface when the goal is in use. There doesn't appear to be any apparatus disclosed for otherwise securing the frame to the ground.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,116,446 to Thompson discloses a multi-function net arrangement that can be assembled in the configuration of a soccer goal or a volleyball net. Collapsible frame members are disengageable to permit assembly in the different configurations. Upright stakes can be driven into the ground, then fitted with elongated extensions as the primary supports for the volleyball net configurations. A cross bar and angle braces are added for the soccer goal configuration. The net is attached to the uprights and cross bar by clips.
U.S. Pat. No. 4,045,032 to Cox discloses a practice net arrangement in which only two spaced upright poles are used to support a net. The uprights are attached to the net by pin and grommet arrangements. The bottom ends of the poles simply rest against the ground.
The "portable" structures described above that include "cross bars" may have the capability of being folded and carried from place to place. However, they are cumbersome due to the length of the cross bar and are therefore difficult to transport without a truck or station wagon. The remaining arrangements, not having cross bars, would be unstable for use in regulation size goals.
The present invention involves a lightweight, portable arrangement which folds quickly from an operative condition to a compact storage condition and that can be easily transported in an automobile to any practice field. Reassembly can be accomplished by one person, resulting in a regulation size net that will hold securely in position without need of a rigid cross bar extending between end frames of the goal frame structure. The unit is entirely portable, yet can be securely affixed to the ground surface by provision of unique ground cup assemblies that secure the frame to the ground and the net to the frame.